Understanding transnational identity through consumption: Issues and methodology

Globalization, both as a term and as a phenomenon has spawned a corpus of writing and debates. One thing scholars agree, however, is that the world is much more interconnected than ever. Despite international borders and associated institutional or infrastructural boundaries - of law, culture, etc. - people are forging connections across time and space. In the wake of this the dispersed diasporas are becoming transnational "communities", these communities are said to build social fields which span nations and distances. What are these fields and does the construction of these fields in any way add to the sense of community? If communities no longer share the territorial space of received notions such as nations and if they are on the move, as much as the cultural aspects that surround them, then how do they share a common sense of identity consciousness? These and related questions are the main focus of this paper. The paper further explores possible elements that help forge a sense of identity. One such possibility, in the age of globalization, is simultaneous consumptions of images, events and things - a field of shared consumption, creating a "shared sentiment". The paper explores this connection between consumption and identity. It also examines the methodological implication of studying communities across nations.